#as much criticism i have for the game (having a story that pales to the honkai games & massacring Paimon like wth)

[bvnga-aprikot]

i shit you not Navia came home twice in the same 10 pull at early pity what has been happening ever since i got Furina

[fllagellant]

Sometimes I cannot tell if you guys want villains who do not want to be redeemed or not bc we get gortash and everyone trips over themselves to make this version of him that is absolved from his actions and he’ s changed … Anyways another day another time Wyll gets put to the back burner with crumbs of content yet everyone huddles around like “ OMG THANK YOU LARIAN … oh yeah sorry about Wyll : ((( “

You guys get you are a part of the problem right . You are letting Larian know they can get away with being racist as long as they feed fandom and whatever . Instead of actual quality of life updates and patching in content that would Actually help the game run better and feel finished , they just bloat the game and let companions go untouched with minimal content while playing into whatever the loudest voices in fandom demand the most .

The studio account should not be interacting with fandom so often . This blur between creators and fans is bad ! This leads to fans blindly defending and protecting a Game Studio that they have no connection to because haha larian mad a funny reply . And this also causes a feeling of ownership that should not be there ! You do not own a piece of bg3 and you should not be dictating it ! This is different from criticism btw . Just so we are Clear . Larian deserves and needs criticism .

It is super telling that they voices they are choosing to listen to are not voices that actually care about the game at its story . If they were , we would not have Zero Story for the Son of the Duke of Baldur’ s Gate and yet we have so much for a character that isn’ t actually tied into any major story beat ! We have no more for the character directly tied to Gortash with a prototype of the Steel Watch in her chest , but we can take a side character a few people wanted to bang and speed to have him included ad a full companion ! Instead of Dark Urge getting more content with Orin , Savrok and anyone else that had a tie to Bhaal , they get their relationship with a guy unrelated to all that be made to be read more and more explicitly romantic when that is just ruining the character !

Wyll should have a proper sex scene . He should have a romanced greeting that changes after the proposal . He should have more personal story content . He should have scenes of him in Baldur’ s Gate . The Emperor reveal as Balduran should not have been the main focus of HIS FINAL STORY QUEST . He should have hug and kiss options in the epilogue . People should comment on the engagement ! He should have all of this !! AND MORE FRANKLY .

But because everyone is so quick to forgive Larian , they’ ll never feel pressured to add any of this . They’ ll never feel like they’ ll loose players if they don’ t . Because you guys don’ t actually care . No , I am not saying thank you to larian for not giving me anything I have been asking for and sending feedback on for months . I am not thanking larian for choosing to bend over backwards to random big name fandom people who are racist and just want to fuck the pale guys again and again .

Larian Studio is not your fucking friend, stop acting like they are .

[vampireistic]

the problem with natlan / sumeru

warning: long post

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to preface this i’d like to say that i’m in no ways an expert in the topics present, i’m just an autistic dumbass with too much time on his hands who enjoys a bit of research — i’m in no way, shape or form trying to belittle players who are excited for the update, by all means i hope you enjoy it, i’m just trying to give criticism.

you can enjoy/play a game while criticising it simultaneously.

when it comes to the topic of racial diversity and a company like hoyoverse that’s based in china, there’s quite a lot of political baggage that comes along with it. while i’ll try my best to go over that, i’m afraid i can only give a very limited eastern european perspective on it and i’ll certainly get things wrong or misinterpret things — if you’d like a more thorough view on the politics, please go read the post made by @zeichannnnn (hope you don’t mind the tag my love)

firstly, i’ll be going over general misconceptions, ridiculous excuses and or stereotypes that i’ve seen commonly come up in this conversation.

any and all screenshots will have usernames cut off for privacy, i want to maintain a civilised discussion and not cause argument.

a lot of my critiques are more so towards the attitude the fandom has when it comes to this argument and their blatant colourism. as my friend above says, no one ever complained about characters in liyue/inazuma being paper white despite the fact realistically, no one in EA is that colour naturally. this of course stems from the beauty standards but that’s a discussion for later on.

the point is that if say a nation like liyue, had the same skin colour as a character like xinyan (who hails from liyue and has a liyue name) people would undoubtedly be upset. so why is it that when in terms of nations that are based off countries with a darker skin colour variety, complaining about the characters being white is seen as a problem?

culture isn’t defined by racial diversity, but when you’re monetising off the representation of different countries cultures, the very least you can do is show the actual diversity within said culture instead of slapping a cultural name on a white model (cue that one picture of the egyptian dude who looks like a plain american).

the idea that because it’s fantasy or anime, having black characters is surreal or improbable is rooted in white supremacy’s hold over unfair beauty standards as well as just the general consensus that black people are less desirable in media. which is completely false.

characters like dehya have proven that a character’s race is irrelevant when it comes to likeness, given the fact the chinese community ended up donating to charities because of said characters story.

the reason why the lightly toasted characters appear tan to you is because the rest of the cast is so horrifically pale (nahida’s hex code is #FFF7F1, cyno’s is #EEC6A6 which when placed next to each other may look like a big difference, but in reality the colours are on the same side of the colour wheel only a few spaces apart).

hoyoverse does in fact use culture as a mere aesthetic and costume to plant on white models. that is NOT to say they misrepresent culture entirely: this post goes over how hoyoverse is perfectly capable of doing impressive research to bring forth forgotten or unknown bits of culture.

even aside from the problems with racial diversity, the character design department has been known to completely fail when it comes to accurate representation. from the sexualisation of the kimono in characters like raiden shogun (which even the eastern part of the fandom have been upset about) to the character of yunjin where the chinese player based believed she was more like a lolita inspired caricature than a real depiction. they don’t understand how to mingle tradition with modernism.

in all fairness, it is difficult — and i will praise the game for making natlan much more technologically advanced and vibrant than people were expecting because having the one nation that’s based off africa and indigenous people be a wasteland would’ve ultimately been a problem. personally, i even love the slight mashup of “tribes” and the pokémon esque aesthetic — its new, and a smart way to bring two things together.

same thing cannot be said for how hyv ignores the fact darker people of colour are also significant when it comes to the building of culture.

please read over these that go more into depth about problems:

natlan being an amalgamation of three separate countries/cultures.

misrepresenting both continents natlan’s based from

another thing that’s always bothered me is the excuses people used in sumeru about the presentation of characters that were based off real people; specifically, kusanali.

yes, she’s based off a hindu moon goddess who’s described as pale and sure that could’ve been the reason she’s nearly the colour white — but how come candace, who’s based off kandake, a fully black woman, is presented as being slightly tan? you can’t pick and choose what you represent and honestly the idea that nahida’s character is supposed to be a depiction of the moon goddess is disrespect to the goddess herself (please go look at a singular picture of her and you’ll understand the utter tragedy).

hoyoverse also has a bit of a history with both whitewashing their slightly tan characters (nekomiya from zoneless zen zero, arlan from honkai star rail etc) but i think one of their biggest proofs of disrespect comes to carole pepper from hi3.

now, this is not at all me saying you can’t present female characters as very muscular — no. in fact, i would’ve loved if characters like beidou had a similar sort of build. but out of all the characters you could’ve chosen to give this to, you chose a black woman.

would this be a problem if it continued with other characters? not really. the issue lies within the fact the ONLY mother in game who’s presented as buff and “masculine looking” is a black woman — something that’s quite literally a stereotype against black women who are regarded as “naturally less feminine” than white women.

eastern beauty standards

the assertion that eastern beauty standards prevent the inclusion of black characters in video games is not only invalid but also reflects deeper issues of bias and systemic exclusion in the gaming industry. this argument is flawed for several reasons, including the diversity of beauty standards in eastern cultures, the global nature of the gaming market, and the responsibility of creators to reflect and promote inclusivity.

to claim that eastern beauty standards universally exclude black characters oversimplifies and homogenizes the diverse beauty ideals present in countries like japan, south korea, and china. these cultures are not monolithic and have their own histories and contemporary movements that embrace a variety of appearances.

creators in the gaming industry have a responsibility to reflect the diversity of the real world and promote inclusivity. video games are a powerful medium that can shape perceptions, challenge stereotypes, and foster empathy. by including black characters, game developers can contribute to a more inclusive and equitable society. this requires intentionality and a commitment to representation that goes beyond mere tokenism. the argument that eastern beauty standards prevent such inclusion suggests a lack of willingness to challenge existing norms and expand the narrative possibilities within games. hoyoverse have themselves stated in their mission statement that their goal is to show inclusivity.

that’s not to say it’s not clear that china’s beauty standards have unfortunately affected the gaming market: but for a game that brandishes itself on localising itself for a global audience (meaning, outside of its region), it’s a poor excuse. those standards aren’t universal and shouldn’t be used as gateway into designing.

once again, i am NOT at all very well versed in politics especially one that’s overseas (well, next door neighbour in a way) so i definitely will misinterpret or misunderstand things unintentionally and if i do, i’m really sorry.

historical nihilism to me doesn’t relate to black people, just actual story events (hence why hoyoverse had to put a warning label for fontaine that the events presented didn’t represent that of the real world and any similarities were mere coincidence). black people existing isn’t regarded as “politically harmful” neither is it an extraordinary idea — it’s just another group of people.

although, the CCP has a MASSIVE history about their demonisation and hatred of black people therefore, even without the idea that the censorship stems from something like historical nihilism, it’s likely something to do with individual prejudice.

politically, i can semi-understand why hoyoverse is in a tight space for racial diversity. but that doesn’t mean i’m willing to baby a company that profits billions worth of profit from other cultures that they misrepresent and i’m even less inclined to hold the hands of hoyoverse dickriders who believe people complain about race just solely to whine. it’s a real systemic issue, and one that’s prevalent in a multitude of games aside from genshin.

people from the cultures presented are rightfully upset and they shouldn’t be told to just “accept”mediocrity. it’s their culture and identities being ridiculed, it’s their identities being profited from for the sake of aesthetics for a game that preaches inclusivity to the people that are willing to ignore its prejudice.

hell, even as a polish person, just thinking about what they’ll do with snezhnaya upsets me even if it’s not racially based — once again, the media emphasises the idea that eastern europe / slavic culture is purely russia meanwhile they steal little things from all of the surrounding countries in eastern europe (won’t forget the fact they changed that password thing in sumeru from “ravioli” to “pierogi”).

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TL;DR hoyoverse uses other people’s cultures and identities as an aesthetic and proceeds to profit off of it while misrepresenting the sample of people they chose to depict and while a political argument can be made in this regard, ultimately the backlash from people rightfully feeling unjustified in the lack of racial diversity is what amplifies these colourist attitudes: and while hoyoverse has seemingly much more legal repercussions to commit to their idea of diversity, the fandom has no excuse for their disregard of different identities.

also just a funny thing my friend and i did to show just how white these characters are lol

“ blackwashing “ versus “ whitewashing “

i feel like i need to add this little section too because i know there will be a lot of people that draw or reimagine the characters in a variety of different skin tones, and i know a lot of people will be upset (usually it’s just the lowlife weebs who cry at the thought of a black woman being in the same room as them).

historically, media, including video games and anime, have predominantly featured pale-skinned characters, often neglecting the representation of people of color. this lack of diversity reinforces a narrow view of beauty and heroism, contributing to the systemic exclusion of non-white individuals. blackwashing helps to rectify these historical imbalances by providing a broader spectrum of racial representation. it challenges the default assumption that characters must be pale-skinned and introduces audiences to a more inclusive range of appearances.

representation matters profoundly in media. seeing characters that reflect one's own identity can have significant positive effects on self-esteem and cultural pride. blackwashing creates opportunities for black audiences to see themselves in roles and narratives traditionally dominated by pale-skinned characters.

critics (once again, youtube creators and tiktok lmao) of blackwashing often argue that it disrespects original character designs or cultural contexts. however, the impact of changing a character's skin tone is minimal compared to the harm caused by whitewashing. whitewashing often erases the cultural significance of non-white characters, perpetuating stereotypes and denying the rich diversity of the source material. blackwashing, in contrast, does not erase cultural identities but rather enhances the inclusivity of the media. it provides a more diverse and representative depiction without detracting from the character's original essence or storyline.

in addition, usually when a character is black in fantasy media or even just an anime/game with a lore based story, it’s because their race is significant to who they are (i.e tiana from princess and the frog who faces racial discrimination — without her being a person of colour, this storyline and the events that follow wouldn’t make sense).

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i’m sorry for such a long and probably nonsensical rant, but this has bothered me into absolute oblivion especially the community’s response to the uproar of people who rightfully critique and are upset by the company.

[ririya-translates]

Kokuto Neji's Story

Translation of Neji's concept art short story (original) for his birthday on March 22nd. Story by Shin Towada (JJ lead writer and Ishida's sister). Art by Lownine. Much like the others, there aren't really any spoilers as it's at the very beginning of the game before the first play.

The stage is a gigantic machine. Jacks and Jeannes are the gears and I'm the mechanic who assembles them all.

The darkened room is lit solely by a clattering computer with light strong enough to rival the midday sun. The bookshelves along the walls are crammed tight beyond usual capacity. The remaining books that couldn't fit have been turned into a fort on the floor. "Hmmm." Out of that pile, he easily picks out a book while holding a cup of coffee in his other hand. The one craning his neck towards the computer screen is the owner of this room. He's a third-year at Univeil Drama School. Working under somewhat special circumstances, he's the leader of Quartz: Kokuto Neji. His classmates include the Quartz Al Jeanne, Sarafumi Takashina, and Jack Ace, Kai Mutsumi. Taking liberal advantage of Univeil's culture of respect for personal autonomy, Neji doesn't just write and perform. He's able to act as both a Jack and a Jeanne, using his many talents to bring the performance together. Even now, he's in the middle of making preparations for the newcomers' performance. His eyes dart around as he scrolls through the screen. He's fidgety inside his head. For this reason, a knock at the door rings out unusually strongly.

"Yes, yes, come iiiin!" As Neji snaps back to reality, he opens the door with a feeling of anticipation. "Thanks." Behind the door stands a person with pale skin and soft hair. So soft it's as if the colour has faded and dissolved. This utterly adorable person raises his eyes towards Neji. "Why on earth would you call me over here then ignore me? I have things to do too you know." The edge of criticism in his voice gives a very different impression from his outside appearance. "Sorry about that, Shirota!" Mitsuki Shirota. He's a second-year, one year below Neji. As one would expect from his looks, he's been assigned to female roles as a Jeanne. "Honestly, I didn't think you'd actually show up." Shirota's eyes grow sharper as he speaks without hesitation. "Using a first-year as your carrier pigeon, what kind of excuse is that?" Neji had casually requested one of the brand new Quartz students to send Shirota to his office. "Well weren't you the one who told me to stop asking Kai to do things?" "Obviously. You shouldn't be using our Jack Ace for your trivial errands." "Right, so instead I asked this new person to be a pinch hitter." "I said to stop doing that too. Ugh, what do you want?" "How did that kid get you to come here? What kinda trap did he use?" "…You called me here for no reason didn't you. I'm leaving." "Hey, wait!" As Shirota turns to leave, Neji holds out both of his hands as if to say 'I'm sorry, I'm screwed up!' Shirota's expression darkens, recognizing that Neji hasn't reflected on his actions one bit. "So? What do you want?" Neji prefaces his words with, "I guess I messed up a bit," before finally cutting to the chase. "What is your impression of the first-years?" Shirota furrows his brow. "You asked Fumi and Kai this too, didn't you?" "You're right, I did!" He had asked both Fumi and Kai the same question. "If you have answers from both the Al Jeanne and Jack Ace, that should be enough. Why do you need to ask me too?" "What are you talking about?! You're our Tresor. You're our flower too!" Tresor is the name for Univeil Jeannes with strong singing abilities. The title suits Shirota perfectly. His outstanding vocal talents add vibrant colour to their performances. It's popular with audiences too. "I am glad you're with Quartz still though. I know you're pretty in-demand with Rhodonite." Shirota stays silent at the mention of that name. Univeil is divided into four separate classes with their own special traits. As the "transparent" Quartz class, they are primarily made up of inexperienced performers who have yet to find their true colours. This could put the class at a disadvantage, but really there are quite a few who enrol brimming with hidden talents. Quartz gives them the space to let those talents free. The content of their performances are tailored specifically for the current state of the class. The songs, dances, acting, all of it.

In contrast, classes like Onyx and Rhodonite have clearly defined colours. Powerful Jack dancers are the main selling point of Onyx, whereas Rhodonite pushes the dazzling singing talents of their Jeannes front and centre. Considering Shirota's abilities, it wouldn't be strange at all for him to have been sorted into Rhodonite. Actually, Rhodonite's class leader is pretty taken with him. But whatever class you look at, all of them are desperately aiming for that top spot -- now more than ever.

"So? What do you think of this year's new students?" Neji's tone of voice drops for the first time in this conversation,"You know it won't be good if things stay as they are, right? What with Amber and all…" That's the name of the fourth Univeil class. But it's hard to act as if the others are on equal ground with them. Shirota seems to grasp the weight of these words. He grips the sky blue tie around his neck as he appears deep in thought. He finally opens his mouth. "…There are three people I noticed," he says bluntly. Starting with Person 1. "Orimaki. I don't know how he got into Univeil with his singing skills so low, but his voice is strong and direct." Onto Person 2. "Yonaga. Him being as he is, he's a late bloomer who's constantly nervous about how he even got into Univeil. But he also thinks twice as much about the meaning of each song. That being said…"

Shirota's immediate answer suddenly hits a pause. "It's possible both of them just got my attention because they aren't very good." "In that case, they should consider themselves lucky you graced your eyes on them." Neji jokes then stares at him intently. "And the third person?" Mitsuki sighs at being asked for his final answer. "It's the one you made into your little carrier pigeon." A voice deep in Neji's heart whispers 'I knew it.' "So then, does our carrier pigeon also have a glimmer of sparkle out of a mountain of problems like Orimaki and Yonaga do?" "No, that guy is…" Shirota hesitates a moment as he chooses his words carefully. "I still don't know yet." "You don't know, which means…?" "Exactly what I said." He speaks as if to say he will give no further comment on the matter. "Is that enough for you now? I'm leaving." Having finished what he was asked, Shirota heads for the door. "Ah, one last thing! How did this pigeon get you to come over here?" Shirota is the type who prefers not to group up with others in class. He keeps a distance between himself and other people. He's not the type someone could easily convince by just asking outright. Even moreso if it comes from a student younger than him. "……" Shirota responds to Neji's hastily thrown words with silence. He opens the door to leave. That's as far as we're getting today, is it? "…It wasn't anything special." Neji's mood suddenly shifts at the sound of a reply he didn't expect to ever hear. "I was just taking a short break during practice and he came up to me and said 'Neji was asking for you'." A surprised 'ohh?' slips out of Neji's mouth. "So in other words, he chose when to make the request based on timing that would work for you?" There are times when Shirota is busy singing of course; however, there are also a lot of times when he appears to be doing nothing, but is actually busy arranging music in his mind. Figuring out the timing of when he's truly taking a break is no easy task. Even aside from the music, there are times when he doesn't want to be hassled with having to talk to someone. Using this understanding of his quirks, that carrier pigeon was able to start up a conversation. "Isn't that actually quite special after all?!" Neji says with a nod of admiration.

Upon hearing this, Shirota restrains himself from turning around and calling him a bald-faced liar. "This was all part of your plan, wasn't it?" His eyes sharply say, 'You haven't fooled me.' "Turning him into your carrier pigeon worked out just as you planned. Getting me to show up here and to name him as one of the students I noticed. You already knew all these things. It was just a ploy to confirm them." Shirota states his assertions strongly. Neji grins. He keeps up the act that there's no hidden motive behind his actions, but it smells like a lie. Shirota's face fills with disgust. He passes through the door, speaking as if he cannot bear to be around Neji any longer. "Please don't use me as a ruler for measuring other people." He shuts the door immediately to not let the conversation linger. "My my, Shirota is quite clever isn't he." Listening to the footsteps fade into the distance, Neji stifles his smile. "But regardless, the fact that pigeon was able to navigate this sense of distance with Shirota shows he might have quite a number of uses." This could be precisely reflected on-stage too. Neji's mind overflows with so many different ideas at an intensity that could give birth to a whole other world. "However, the 'I still don't know' part is there too. Fumi and Kai said the same thing." It seems difficult to learn the true nature of this bird. Even for Neji, there's many things about this younger student he's still unable to grasp. "The stage is a gigantic machine. Jacks and Jeannes are the gears…and I'm the mechanic who assembles them all. What shape will these talents take? Just watch and see." Neji takes a sip from the coffee he's been holding all this time. It went cold ages ago, but in this moment it's just what his body needs.

[heavenlymorals]

The Vampire and the Stag: A Look Into the Symbolic significance of Dutch Van Dir Linde and High Honor Arthur Morgan

Warning: This post has spoilers for Red dead 2

Symbolism is one of the most important visual and literary elements used to push the narrative of Red Dead Redemption 2. The game is chock full of biblical references, animal symbolism, and references to other famous works. Hell, I might've even found a Blood Meridian reference via that Judge Meredith Holden letter, but that might be a reach. In any case, this game uses symbolism to push the story further and I want to do a short little retrospective on my two favorite characters of this game and what they represent in the literary sense.

Let's start with Dutch.

Dutch Van Dir Linde is many things. He's a violent idealist, a romantic, a gang leader, a notorious outlaw, and a legendary gunslinger in his own right.

He's also an allegory for the vampire, and by vampire, I mean the European literary symbolism of the creature.

Let's start off with looks. Right from the get go, Dutch is differentiatued from the rest of the gang members by his luxurious and eccentric appearance, something that the vampire usually has. He had gold chains, personalized gold rings, one with a D and another with a lion. His jacket seems to be velvet, he smokes cigars rather than cigarettes, and his hair is done up in ringlets as we know his actual hair texture is straight rather than curly (Guarma, epilogue, RDR1).

His color scheme is also very stereotypical of the more modern vampire. While other characters usually have a more diverse color scheme, Dutch is suited in reds and blacks the entire main game.

The nature of the undead is also with Dutch via his horse, the Count. First of all, there is just the name the Count that gives off vampire energy (Count Dracula) but there is also the fact that Dutch's horse shouldn't exist. Foals born with albinism, which is the coat the Count is said to have, die because of lethal white syndrome. The Count should have died long ago but it's still alive somehow- he cheated death like a vampire. That's also not mentioning death in the sense that death comes riding on a pale horse.

Vampires in classic literature are never just about vampires as these charming blood sucking creatures almost always exist to convey a deeper meaning of consumption. In the 1800s, this idea of consumption, with the most famous visualization of it being the older vampire man sucking the blood of young, usually virginal women, is often an allegory for selfish sex and defilement. Vampires in old media could very well be a criticism of wealthy men taking advantage of younger women, taking their virginity, and then tossing them aside and being virtually fine while the women lose everything from respect to family to even lives, which can also be the case with Dutch and Molly, but overtime, the vampire became less an allegory to write sex without outwardly writing sex in the 1800s, and became more a symbol of personal consumption at the expense of others.

The wonderful Professor Thomas C. Foster puts it best: "That's what this figure (the vampire) really comes down to, whether in Elizabethan, Victorian, or more modern incarnations: exploitation in its many forms. Using other people to get what we want. Denying someone else's right to live in the face of our overwhelming demands. Placing our desires, particularly our uglier ones, above the needs of another. That's pretty much what the vampire does, after all." - "How to Read Literature Like a Professor"

Dutch is basically that. He consumes people for the sake of his own goals, his own dreams, and his own delusions of grandeur. He will believe in people as long as those people believe in him, but their belief in him is more important to him than his belief in them.

Dutch seems like a Messiah to the disenfranchised, a Jesus figure of sorts. He seems charming, empathetic, cultured, and different from other men, like the vampire. People are enthralled by him, become obsessed or loyal to him, like the vampire's victims. However, these people, like Arthur, John, Molly, Bill, Javier, etc., are used and Dutch, the vampire, doesn't return the favor as he only consumes for his own favor.

And in the end? People suffer or they die and Dutch moves on to his next victims, even if he did love these people.

Dutch is the embodiment of the vampire in every possible way except in the most literal way, which is the blood sucking.

Now let's move on to Arthur Morgan.

Arthur and the stag are one in the same when it comes to Red Dead's symbolism. If one were to mention a stag in the Red Dead universe, more likely than not, people would think of high honor Arthur Morgan. The Stag is Arthur's symbolism, but let us dig a little deeper into what the stag could symbolize beyond just high honor.

When it comes to animal symbolism, stags are almost as iconic as male lions with what they are meant to represent. All throughout various cultures, the stag usually represents a noble creature. It can represent honor (duh), strength, virility, grace, and regeneration, amongst other things, but I want to focus on interpretations of the stag from a few cultures and how they ultimately relate back to Arthur Morgan.

Considering that Arthur has Welsh heritage, or so we assume, let us start with the interpretation of the stag in Welsh culture and mythology. The stag has a huge presence in Welsh culture and mythology, with even some gods and higher beings taking the image of a stag. However, I would like to focus on the stag as a messenger, a messenger between worlds, which is what Arthur becomes in a sense to John Marston.

John's world for such a huge part of his life as the gang. The gang raised him, fed him, taught him to read, taught him morals, taught him many skills, and gave him a purpose. The gang is his world and for such a huge chunk of his life, it was the only world he knew. Sure, Abigail gets pregnant because of him, but she was a part of that world too.

Arthur was able to see other worlds. Mary wasn't a girl who was downtrodden like Abigail and thus would take on well to the life they lived. She was a normal girl and he was not a normal man. Eliza wasn't part of his gang life either, and neither was Issac. They lived in a different world, in a world of civilization, in a world where they didn't or shouldn't have had to keep one eye open to stay alive. Arthur would jump over to their worlds, even if just for a short amount of time, and then back to the gang- he has seen and experienced both of those worlds.

Arthur then gives John the message that he should leave and be a man and provide for his wife and protect his child by leaving the gang life that destroyed the both of them. Arthur becomes a messenger from one world to another- from gang life to normalcy. And with that message, John experiences a change- a change of character and motives.

The Stag is a messenger and Arthur is a messenger. A messenger to not only John, but to everyone else he tried to get out of there for he experienced two worlds and one is better than the other.

Another interpretation of the stag is the selflessness of sacrifice, which can be shown through the Greek culture of story and mythology and explained perfectly in the story "Iphigenia at Aulis" by Euripides. Iphigenia goes to her father and tells him that she will offer herself as a sacrifice to the goddess Artemis. Sacrifices must be made to keep the gods happy and the people alive and happy. Iphigenia offering such a thing shows her selflessness, her want of wanting others to be safe and sound, even at the expense of herself.

Sound familiar?

Reminds me of a certain dark romantic cowboy.

By the end of the story, Iphigenia's selflessness was rewarded by the goddess, and as Iphigenia's father was about to slit her throat, the girl got replaced by a stag while Iphigenia was escorted to live amongst the gods for her selflessness.

The deer becomes the sacrifice and in a way, Iphigenia and the deer become one and the same. The deer is sacrificed for the sake of others- the stag becomes a symbol of noble selflessness, much like Arthur. Arthur sacrifices himself in order to save John, Abigail, and Jack- a noble cause, a noble sacrifice.

The stag being a noble sacrifice is also associated with certain Native American cultures (I cannot for the life of me think of which tribes they were exactly, but once I find them, I will edit this post). The stag must be killed for people to eat, thus the deer is a noble creature. The consumption of the stag is an allegory of people living better lives or having better days because of the sacrifice of a person. Because of that, the stag is a heavily respected creature.

And given that Dutch's vampire is all about consumption, Arthur's symbolism of being a stag is perfect for their dynamic since the deer is all about sacrifice and nobility and the vampire is all about selfishness and despair.

In any case, the deer represents many things across many cultures, from being a messenger to being a sacrifice, but one thing for certain is that the stag is synonymous with honor and nobility- the person that Arthur tried to be in the end.

Yapyapyapyapyapgodifuckinglovesymbolism-

[dappledpaintbrush]

Hey question, what’s your honest opinions on canon Dimentio? Like, wasted potential maybe?

OOOOO this is very interesting

I’m not saying this because he’s my ultimate fave (I’m very critical of super paper mario and it’s my ultimate fave game-wise), but I believe he’s perfect. Like honest to god if the writers nailed ANYTHING, they nailed Dimentio and everything about him

Dimentio is a very secretive character. Sure, he might not initially appear to be. He’s consistently flaunting himself in his attire and his words, words that seem so full at a glance, but are ominously empty when scrutinized. He forces the audience’s attention to fall upon him. He WANTS all eyes to stare, both the characters’ and the person’s on the other side of the screen. He is draped in a rich, smooth purple and a sharp, extremely pale yellow. He makes purple and yellow, two complementary colors, seem inverse. He makes them wrong. He makes everything wrong. Something about this character is wrong. It’s not the fact he’s on the villain’s team. It’s something else. Something you can feel but can’t put into words. It’s those words. It’s those colors. It’s that smile. It’s that two-faced mask.

And of course you’re right. Of course he’s the secret villain. He has to be. What else is his purpose? The heroes are victorious, the villain who was also destroying all worlds is redeemed because his motive was known, the other villains live the rest of their lives with good intent in their hearts, and Dimentio is dead.

And … It can stay that way. You don’t have to know anything else. There’s no more Memories. There’s nothing more that you cannot miss. Dimentio can remain as he wished to be: Unreadable. Secretive. Wrong.

But, if you wanted to, you could go beyond what the game intended you to. You could find and take out the narrative that was tucked away and hidden for you. Only you. There’s no cast of characters or musical score witnessing this part of the story with you. It’s just you. You, and Dimentio. Dimentio is dead.

I love Blumiere so, so much. He’s such a beautifully crafted character that is pure tragedy personified, and he deserves nothing but love, and thankfully, that is something he is lucky enough to possess. But Blumiere is a liar. Dimentio is a liar, too. Blumiere lost someone he loved. Dimentio lost someone he loved, too. Blumiere never found happiness. Dimentio never found happiness, either. Blumiere tried to destroy existence. Dimentio tried to destroy existence, too. Blumiere revealed his secrets. Dimentio did not. Blumiere is, somewhere, alive. Dimentio is dead.

How crazy is it that something that was so critical for Super Paper Mario’s story to unfold was only halfway told? How crazy is it that the writers created two characters that are so beautiful and so tragic and have to be handled with the utmost amount of care and an unbelievable amount of nuance and only one’s story is brought to light? To me, that is the best thing they could have done. Dimentio’s story did not need to be told like Blumiere’s. It would have harmed his character- his secretive, unreadable character. The writers wanted him to be a mystery, and by god they did not go back on their word. They kept him true to himself, and he died true to himself. Maybe he’s alive, somewhere, true to himself. It would not be the first time he and Blumiere mirrored one another.

It is fascinating to me. It’s something I’ve rarely seen accomplished this well, it’s something I’ve rarely seen accomplished at ALL. To me, Dimentio is far from wasted potential. To me, he is one of the best characters, both good and evil, that Nintendo has ever created, and the fact a good portion of people may be confused with why I hold that perspective is precisely why I personally have it. Dimentio’s perfection as a character IS that confusion. What is not known is what makes everything. This game’s writing is beyond words and I believe that even when it’s showered in praise it still remains unappreciated. It’s part of why I hold it so close to my heart and have for all these years. It’s so unique. It’s so beautiful. It’s so tragic. It’s so secretive. It’s alive.

[missizzy]

So this morning I have decided, after weeks of seeing people go after her for issues that were beyond her control, to write about how awesome Aabria Iyengar has once again been.

It's been a good nine months since her gnome cleric asked her god to his face if he was worth saving, which was a brilliant moment on its own, but now she's created a scene for current events on Exandria that makes it resonate all the more. Aabria was handed a difficult task with the Crown Keepers, when we haven't seen them since Kymal, and now they had to at least partly break apart so Dorian could return to the others without bringing too many people with him for the table to hold, and she had to make us feel it. Having the Spider Queen demand more than Opal was willing to give, bringing the consequences of the actions the player had very much chosen home to roost, may have been obvious enough a move. But it was still pretty daring to really go all out with it the way she did, to have her turn on her friends and just increase in deadliness as the encounter went on, when that would be reminiscent of the near-TPK we'd already just had, and have even the less evil deities be willing to let Opal be destroyed even more than death would do to increase their own chances of survival. And then there was a the really smart move, to have the gemstones around, and to have them trigger flashbacks, so we could at least get some of the important moments of the Crown Keepers' journey. She knew when to exact a steep price-Cyrus may have been the easiest kill, but that meant him being the one killed made sense, and had the added bonus of especially impacting the guy we were staying with. And in the end, she also knew when to call the toll taken, and ultimately allow Fyra-Rai to stay with Opal, for however much consolation that may provide. Then she topped that off on Four Sided Dive this week. As tavern keeper, she was quite good at leading the conversation, and of course she knew what the fans cared most about; three years after the Summer of Aabria first brought her to prominence, she still hasn't lost that "one of us" energy. Plus, when they broke out For the Queen, it was her who first made the Queen the CEO and setting up the zany story that resulted in the best gaming segment that show had produced yet, and also her that gave the story its strongest twist when she went and killed another one of the characters. Also her showing on Critical Role Cooldown was a pretty strong one, too. But it pales in comparison to what she'd pulled off already.

[zushigirl]

In honor of Come What May…a three part story of how I wish things would turn out… Enjoy! I’ll be posting the full story on AO3 as we go :)

I Take My Coffee Black: Part I

Now…Metro General

“What the hell is this crap?”

Frank practically spits the hot liquid back into the flimsy white paper cup.

“Get off your high horse. It’s Folger’s Instant. Same stuff we used to drink in the desert.”

Curtis takes a sip of his own coffee, studying Frank under the brim of his USMC baseball cap. Curt’s blood shot eyes are a dead giveaway that he – like most of New York – have been up all night. Watching with bated breath as Daredevil and a host of superheroes take on Fisk’s minions.

With a sigh, Frank takes another sip of his coffee. “Goddamn - ”

He hisses slightly, the cut on his lip stinging. Curt had done his best to patch up both Frank and Red after the firefight with Bullseye. Makeup covered most of Frank’s bruises, but it couldn’t conceal the worry in his eyes. He can tell by the way his former medic keeps glancing at him… then at the door across the way.

“This is the best Metro General can afford?” he growls, trying to distract himself.

“At 0500? Yes, it is.”

Frank frowns, looking down the stark pale green hallway. Men and women in blue scrubs walk by at a leisurely pace. Unaffected. Unaware that the bravest, ballsiest woman on the planet is in critical care. Recovering from a gunshot wound.

Mourning the loss of her best friend.

“Foggy!”

He can still hear her scream the Counselor’s name. He can feel her panic, panic he never wanted her to feel. David’s feed made it sound like they were two feet away… instead, it took twenty minutes to get to the bloodbath. Even with Lieberman driving like a maniac.

Goddamnit, we should have gotten there sooner.

His eyes trace the entrance of the recovery room. One of those flimsy blue hospital curtains blocks a small window above the door handle. An added layer of privacy. Damn thing feels more suffocating than any red line.

“She’s gonna be fine,” Curt assures him. “They patched up the exit wound and the broken rib. That maniac may be an expert marksman, but she beat him at his own game.” He pauses before adding, “Karen Page must be a pretty special woman…to make you choose here instead of another war.”

You could choose…you could just choose…

Ocean eyes flicker in his memory. Why hadn’t he told her the truth that day, when he was the one in the hospital bed? He thought leaving her was the right thing. He thought…

Frank stares blankly into the distance as he takes another sip of bland coffee and tries not to think about what could have happened.

Thank god Karen clipped Bullseye’s right hand. The fucker was in custody now. Good thing too. If that psychopath ever made it out of prison…none of Red’s preaching would keep Frank from unleashing hell on Benjamin Poindexter.

Red…

The warble of Channel Five news can be heard from the TV at one of the nursing stations. A flicker of worry rises in Frank’s belly. He wants to be pissed at Red but at the same time…

“You were right Frank. I was just one bad day away. Please don’t let her’s get any worse.”

He can’t shake the hollow sound in Matt Murdock’s voice off of him. Can’t shake the image of the other man standing there in blood. His best friend’s blood. Karen’s blood.

Fuck.

“Mr. Castiglione?”

He turns. A new nurse has come on shift, name tag reads Temple. Her dark brown eyes hover on his cut lip. He gets the impression she takes no bullshit.

“Yes ma’am?”

The nurse sighs, pursuing her lips.

“Karen’s going to be okay.”

She says the name with a warm familiarity. Frank immediately wonders how much this woman knows.

“Blood pressure and heat rate are stable. No signs of any complications from surgery.” Temple hesitates… “Your wife’s a fighter for sure.”

Frank doesn’t meet Curt’s gaze, just prays the other man’s eyes aren’t bursting out of their sockets. There hadn’t had time to brief him on the plan. He was just thankful David was quick to pull some strings. A fake marriage license and a passport may be their only ticket to safety.

The woman pauses, eyes narrowing in the silence.

“I know I haven’t been back in town that long, but I’m kinda miffed no one invited me to the wedding. Thought I would have heard about from Matt or Fog…”

She catches herself, sadness flashing across her face.

“Fuck…I’m sorry.”

“No – uh – he’d…he would have wanted all of Karen’s friends to know.” Frank feels his throat tightening. “He loved her too. Probably better than me or… Re…or Matt … if I’m being honest.”

He remembers the look of stricken panic on the Counselor’s face all those years ago. When he’d asked Karen to stay. What would the man’s reaction be to what he asks now?

An older nurse approaches, waving his clipboard at Temple. “She’s up,” he gestures towards Karen’s room. “Threatened to pull out her IV if I don’t get her a real cup of coffee. Told her it’s water only for the next twelve hours. She wasn’t happy.”

Frank chuckles despite himself. “Atta’ girl,” he murmurs.

“Are you coming, Mr. Castiglione?”

The way Temple sizes him up conveys that she trusts him even if she doesn’t believe his story.

He feels his pulse jump. They’d seen each other in the midst of the fight but they hadn’t spoken. Hadn’t spoken since that horrible day when she walked out of his hospital room barefoot. What could he say to her? How could he possibly ask her to –

“She’s waiting, Frank.” Curt’s voice is one of gentle reassurance.

He takes a deep breath, turns on his heels, the stops. “Curt… go home. You’ve done enough. I’ll stand the watch.”

His friend frowns. “You sure man?” I don’t mind staying.”

Frank pauses before answering, a memory flickering in his mind’s eye. Karen and Nelson, sitting at the hipster coffee shop across from their law firm. Sipping coffee and going over case notes. He’d watched from the roof two streets over, not proud to admit the number of times he’d checked on Karen from afar.

“Proof Coffee opens at 0800. Can you come back tomorrow morning with a real damn cup? Make that two. She takes hers black with a sprinkle of cinnamon.”

The nurse seems impressed that he knows Karen’s drink of choice. Curt has enough ware with all to keep a neutral face.

“I’m on it. I’ll let Lieberman know your staying here. See you in 27 hours.”

He spins on his heels and walks down the hall.

Frank watches him go, then follows nurse Temple across the waiting area. She opens the door to the recovery room, pushing back that damn blue curtain quietly. Then she gestures for Frank to step in front of her.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

The sound of the vitals monitor is a steady hum. It’s oddly comforting.

And terrifying.

It means Karen is awake. It means he’s about to speak to her for the first time in… far too long.

He finds the courage to look forward and he sees her. Sitting upright in the bed. Face turned to the window. The sunrise casting her in a celestial glow. Her expression is a haunted one Frank knows all too well…but not the shock of someone who’s new to trauma.

He realizes in that moment that his gut instinct was right. Karen’s felt this kind of pain before.

“Karen, your husband is here.” Temple’s voice is gentle.

A quiet feels the air. Time stops. In the void, Frank wonders if his heartbeat is loud enough for Red to hear all the way across Manhattan.

He watches Karen turn her head. Watches her eyes widen in confusion at the word husband. Then recognition. Then something he’s too scared to name.

They’re both silent for a moment, not noticing as the nurse slips out. Then tears are welling in Karen’s eyes and Frank is falling to his knees by her hospital bed.

“Hey, hey,” he chokes out. “I lied. I lied. Okay? That day…Karen…”

Soft fingers grab his trembling ones. He places his free palm over hers, holding with two hands now.

“I know you lied, you asshole,” Karen says between sobs. “You’re such an asshole…but I…” Her ocean eyes are bright with the words they won’t say yet.

“Yeah,” he laughs. “Yeah, I am.”

“Please tell me you brought real coffee.”

The sound of footsteps silences Frank’s answer.

*

27 hours later…

“I’ll take three drip coffees,” Curtis Hoyle smiles at the barista, waiting for a response.

The bleary-eyed girl with wild auburn tinted hair and a cut-off t-shirt reading MJ just blinks at him.

“Cool. You want room for milk or cream?”

“No…uh…actually, can you sprinkle some cinnamon in one of them.”

The girl gives a half nod as Curtis swipes his card. He sighs, stepping to the side of the cheerful yellow counter. He knows he’s getting old, but whoever Proof Coffee’s manager is could have done a better job with hiring. MJ has the bedside manner of cardboard; not great for 0800 on a Thursday –

Piiinnnggg!

The girl passes three paper cups to Curt, hurriedly grabbing her phone from its charging station. He takes a few sips of his cup, watching her agitated movements.

“Peter! Jesus Christ! Is everyone okay…”

Her hazel eyes widen in relief and Curtis feels guilty for judging her. MJ’s been worried.

“News. Alright. I’ll take a look. Be careful.”

The call’s barely over before the teen is swiping on her phone. Curtis takes a final swig of his own coffee while grabbing to-go lids, trying to look casual.

“Everything good? You seem a little stressed.”

MJ bobs her head, flipping her phone in Curtis’s face. Apple News.

“Shit,” Curtis mutters as he reads the screen.

He turns to leave, then thinks twice. Grabs the two coffees. He may need them as an excuse to sneak back into the hospital.

“Thank you, Miss!”

He leaves MJ staring at her phone. At the headline…

FRANK CASTLE, THE PUNISHER, REPORTEDLY SEEN AT METRO GENERAL.

[oonalovesastarionssimpleplan]

I always find it interesting when people talk about when they fell in love with Astarion.

tell me your stories.

here is my:

My boyfriend said I might like the game, because I'm a big Witcher fan and like medieval fantasy and magic stuff. I also like pen and paper, I just don't have any friends who play it. well, he's right, perfect for me.

I didn't even know he was a vampire. I was also pale and had red eyes. I was more irritated by the Mindflayers and the green alienwoman. Thought Astarion was the clever magistrate, the one who makes clever plans (hahahaha)

So i was thrilled the moment when he tried to bite me. I was surprised at how much i was exited. I liked vampires as a child, i dressed every Halloween. Twilight ruined it for me, I hated it. It wasn't cool for me until The Witcher 3. I love Regis.

Astarion annoyed me a bit with his talk of ruling the world . I liked having him around, enjoyed the dark humor but I always watched him critically. I thought he would betray us at any moment. A typical trickster.

I found him sexy, cool, sassy and a little goofy so I continued the romance but I also tried to get one of the others.

Now it's like an obsession. My boyfriend definitely regrets it, i think. :D

Then his confession scene triggered and the hug killed me. when I realized that there was more to him than a cliche. I hadn't expected this topic and it touched me very much. I cried. I quited the game and had a panic attack. I thought about him a lot and felt how close he was to me. He no longer felt like a gaming character to me. I even felt bad to have seen him as a sex object.

[somethingsteff]

Fic Masterlist

All my stories are currently Obikin.

Bonus Spotify Obikin playlist 🎶

Complete:

You Can Leave Your Boots On - Anakin has been having a stressful week, so Obi-Wan takes it upon himself to give him the perfect surprise featuring his slutty boots and some new lingerie. (Rated E)

Dad's Got a Date with a Vampire - After playing a popular video game, Luke starts to question his dad's new boyfriend. He's so pale compared to the Skywalker family, and do people really have a garlic allergy? (Rated G)

SubSpace: An Adult Experience - Anakin was mortified. He wanted to turn and run. He wanted a black hole to spontaneously form around him and suck him into oblivion. If Obi-Wan didn’t look so pleased he would go back to the hotel they were staying in and try to salvage something of his night and dignity. As it was, Anakin hadn’t seen Obi-Wan smile this much in a very long time.

Anakin tries to plan a fun night out for himself and Obi-Wan, but a few things get lost in translation. Instead, he finds himself pretending to pay attention to a museum lecture. Thankfully Obi-Wan knows just how to salvage the night for his boy. (Rated E)

WIPs:

It Takes A Village - When his best friend suddenly dies, Obi-Wan finds himself the guardian of his infant godson, Korkie. He's lucky to have his father, Qui-Gon, and younger sister, Padme, to help him, but he finds himself getting the most help from Padme's best friend Anakin. A sort of 3 Men and a Baby AU with Obikin slow burn. (Rated E)

ITAV Snippet 1, ITAV Snippet 2, ITAV Snippet 3, ITAV Snippet 4

Beta Readers Need Not Apply - Based off of this post. As a teenager, Anakin gets into reading and writing Star Wars fanfiction and finds one author in particular, Obi-Wan, whose work he loves. When Obi-Wan starts leaving constructive criticism on Anakin's stories, Anakin gets disheartened and leaves the community. Years later they meet again under different screen names and develop a flirtationship. Once their history comes to light, Obi-Wan spends the rest of the evening apologizing to Anakin. (Rated E)

Careful, I Bite - Anakin and Obi-Wan are roommates who enjoy hanging out together over video games - Anakin plays and Obi-Wan watches. In an attempt to increase Obi-Wan's interest in his newest game, Baulder's Gate 3, Anakin makes Obi-Wan as a character and lets him make all the dialogue decisions. When it's time to choose a companion to seduce Obi-Wan selects Asterion and during the first sex scene they realize that their feelings aren't as one-sided as they both previously thought. (Rated E)

Tandom Suns - After a week of nightmares depicting Shmi's death, Anakin finally confides in Obi-Wan what he's been seeing. Instead of dismissing him, Obi-Wan asks Quinlan, currently on Tatooine, to check in on her. After poking around Quin saves Shmi from the Sand People and returns her to her husband. After finding out the good news, Obi-Wan arranges for a two-week meditation retreat and surprises Anakin by taking him to see Shmi. While they visit they come to realize that their relationship surpassed that of simply Master/Padawan years ago (with some meddling help from Shmi). (Rated E)

Nutcracker AU (Unnamed) - At a Christmas party Obi-Wan receives a beautiful, handcrafted Nutcracker from his secret Santa, Anakin. Later on in the evening, a drunk Quinlan accidentally knocks the Nutcracker off a table, breaking it. Anakin reassures a distraught Obi-Wan that he can fix the Nutcracker and they arrange for Obi-Wan to come over to Anakin's apartment after the holidays so he can work on it. They realize that they've both been appreciating each other from afar at parties and decide to do something about it. (Rated T, I think)

Nutcracker rambles

Smash - Anakin is playing Smash or Pass with Ahsoka and Padme when Obi-Wan calls. Without thinking he responds "smash" to Obi-Wan’s holo projection, effectively admitting to everyone his feelings for the man. Smut ensues while Ahsoka tries not to think of her dad's getting it on. (Rated E)

Smash rambles, Smash snippet

Be My (Volunteer) Partner? - Obi-Wan accidentally calls Anakin thinking he signed up to volunteer at the fire department. Even though he had no intention or inclination to do so, Anakin ends up volunteering just to be around Obi-Wan. (Rating unknown)

Volunteer snippet

Unformed thoughts:

Cloni-Wan AU where the Kaminoans make an Obi-Wan clone (designation JM-081) without his knowledge (or consent) and he eventually finds himself in the care of Obi-Wan and Anakin (established relationship) at the Temple. Anakin is thrilled and it doesn't take long for the three of them to enter into a throuple. (Rated E)

Bowling AU where Obi-Wan and Anakin are on opposing bowling teams in a league and after each game they find themselves in a secluded corner of the bowling alley going at it. Hondo is the owner of the bowling alley and, because he thinks he and Obi-Wan are best friends, Obi-Wan has his own set of keys for his late-night activities. (Rated E)

Modern professor/student au (inspired here) where Anakin tries to seduce his Lit professor (Obi-Wan) but Obi-Wan tells him to study instead. After graduation Obi-Wan finds Anakin to tell him what a good boy he was to study and that he's earned a reward. (Rated E)

[nelmyriel]

[ Castlevania: Nocturne ]

Briefly (haha, nope) about my attitude to Netflixvania: I'm not a fan of the original animated series (I totally deny the existence of S3 and S4), but my faith will not be completely broken if/until the writers cross all limits with my favorite character (let's be honest, they're bloody close to it). I'm a fan of Maria Renard (especially the grown-up version), and at the moment I have to enjoy the fact she wasn't forgotten at all.

The gaming community is largely divided between those who see Maria as a funny child added into the universe as a joke, and those who hate the adult version for being implied to be Alucard's love interest (I don’t agree with some fans' interpretation of their relationship, but more on that another time. glorfys_glorioushair's vision is the closest to me).

I'M TIRED, I just want to meet new people, even if they come from Netflix. I will take care of them, warm them up, presenting the games xD

In more detail: Let's start from the obvious part — this is a product of inspiration, not an adaptation in the literal sense. To get some pleasure watching the animated series, you need to distance yourself from games as much as possible. This is a quite standard method nowadays, I think.

I'm still forming an opinion about Nocturne, because the story is not finished yet. But I'm also slowly plunging into melancholy, because Alumaria ship and Maria are the cornerstones of my love to Castlevania per se.

How damaged is the huntress' image? Well, Netflix has definitely missed much potential and done a hideous damage with Maria's swearing, but there's still a chance to patch up such flaws with her growing up. This will not atone their sins, but it's going to smooth things over. (For me, she is supposed to be a battle LADY. Dangerous and daring, but elegant and well-mannered. If I were the adaptation's author, I would tend to the archetype of a young noble lady breaking stereotypes — not a rebellious peasant).

However, I'm hopeful about the family arc. Such plot has controversial nuances, but it's much better than the off-screen death of nameless parents. I want to witness the girl's experiences and life lessons!

I thank and at the same time judge the creators for the way they managed characters' age. Now the gifted summoner better fits the gloomy setting, but, unfortunately, she meets Alucard too early - this fact obviously sets the audience against the romance. Because of Greta, I already had to bury my dream about "one true love" story (its symbolism is expressed in the wolf form), and then they added fuel to the fire.

(In my culture, only the moment (age) when a romance begins is important. Not the moment of first meeting. But it's hard to miss the public outcry — people haven't seen the characters' relations yet, but already hate their dynamics).

I'm also upset that in battle scenes Maria is a pale shadow of herself. In the opening fight, she couldn't handle just one vampire, but I hope that the writers intentionally left room for her skills development. Drawing a little minus for this. But a plus for the sword and the underrated DXC design!

Well, if the plot disappoints me completely, at least a lot of visual content will remain, which is a real treasure for a fan of unpopular Maria.

P.S. Yes, I deliberately omit the analysis of general history, setting, etc. There is a huge room for discussion, but I will leave it to more historically savvy people. One thing I understand for sure: this is one of the most visually and historically rich basis, which wasn't used properly.

Hey Konami, don't you have an animation studio? What are you waiting for? Your followers are dreaming about a canonical adaptation or a remake of an iconic game with significantly deeper plot.

I never seriously criticize and certainly never post angry manifests, especially dedicated to someone’s creative expression. I'm always looking for the positive aspects, but if my patience runs out, I usually just retire.

P.P.S. Sorry for the confusion and my poor English!

[monkey-network]

Good Stuff: FLCL Grunge

or How Not to Grasp Why "Bottled Lightning" Exists

I'll preface this by saying that these recent "seasons" of Fooly Cooly have not ruined the original. That's like if you got a bottomless bag of tropical Skittles, every other minute you get a black Twizzler or flavorless candy corn piece thrown in that you aren't forced to eat but constantly get weirded out that they were in there in the first place. What is bad is that we're up to three sequels of FLCL & none of them even range to being on par with the original in terms of engaging memorability. I'm not the type to rag about X or Y being forgotten online days after it was just released, but it stings seeing a beloved anime have sequel series that everyone wants to forget because nobody asked for them. This isn't like Trigun Stampede where it got to have a newfound fanbase in spite of the backlash of diehards, we're on the 4th story and you might as well imagine the tumbleweeds. It doesn't help that the expectations didn't come with presentable execution... because Grunge was bad.

I'm honestly just waiting for Uzumaki at this point

It's ironic that while my reviews are about animated media, I don't really discuss the animation given my minimal expertise; I'm more of an emotional critic than a technical one. FLCL Grunge is the exception because it feels like a mess. It's like an enhanced PS1 game that looks graphically better than Berserk 2016 but has that same quality of stiff, choppy action and inconsistent blending of 2D imagery. You just wonder why this couldn't just be 2D? You would believe the CG studio responsible had this as their first-ever credit, but it's not as Montblanc's actual first feature had somehow better animation than this, and that was back in 2012. So either it was rushed or Production IG had no clue what they were going for. Worst aspect just has to be the rock humans because they can be so awkward to see and oh yeah, close but different topic.

Why are there Thing people?

Fooly Cooly I don't think anybody was ever in it for the lore. It was a miniseries where the pieces you could put together offered some sense while having open-ended questions. Even though the OG was far more grounded despite itself, I'm not against having aliens in these sequels because I'm all for things getting weird to spice up the purposeful mundanity. My only issue is the rock people are all we really have in this story when there could exist other species. It's a symptom of a larger problem these sequels have where things exist with none of the deserved flesh. Most enjoyed the OG more for the personal journey, not really piecing everything involving Medical Mechanica. With this, it just feels like they're trying to get Matpat's attention with all the stuff Haruko does with very surface-level backstories regarding the main characters. You know as much about what happened to Rockies as you do anything about Shin or Orinoko, which heavily pales in comparison to the previous three MCs. All this wrapped in an undercooked 3 episodes that is, and I'm not kidding...

Just a worse take of The Simpsons "Trilogy of Error"

One of my favorite story tropes is when everything takes place in one day, bonus points for interconnecting multiple stories into one. They do that here like in The Simpsons episode where everyone's involved in one crazy night. The problem again stems from that I barely care about the MCs enough and while there exists setup, you only get to know so much before it's over. It took episode 3 for me to give somewhat a fuck and even then they had to rush the climax all for a shitty reveal that it was a prequel this whole time. Giving Progressive its credit, at least we got time to grasp the characters. Any interconnected throughline is all for the climax which misses the point of the story structure. In the end, it felt like nothing. Whether it's a positive or not that it was only three episodes is debatable, but man...

Haruko was still hot. Take your pennies for a nickel

Making this review wasn't so much about disliking Grunge as it was about saying the original Fooly Cooly wasn't a fluke. To say that is like saying the unique animation structure of Into the Spiderverse was a fluke that couldn't be utilized well anywhere else post-release. I don't hate Grunge or think it's the worst anime ever, but this didn't subside the disenfranchisement that stemmed from an OVA that could work as an anthology. Something is only lightning in a bottle when you otherwise don't paint forgettable story elements with average to subpar imagery and have The Pillows carry every scene with their music. If this wasn't FLCL, it was a pretty underwhelming anime. As it is, it's another sequel that mistakes having ambition and familiarity for being engaging and resonating.

2 Out Of 5; An Erectile Dysfunctional Season

[pip-n-flinx]

First, let me be clear, I’m not a subscriber to The Rules Lawyer on Youtube. With that out of the way, I have no idea about the rest of the content on this channel I’m posting this because the Paizo website is down and in addition to reading their full statement from 1/12/23 he also provides some context on who some of the people involved are.

Paizo, the company that publishes Pathfinder and Starfinder, has just thrown down the gauntlet with Wizards of the Coast over their leaked intentions to revoke the Open Gaming License. For those unfamiliar, the OGL (1.0a as it stands at time of posting) underpins a truly startling number of works. Mechanics and expressions like ‘Lich’ in its modern incarnation, Magic Missile, as well as all D&D rules largely labeled Systems Reference Document (SRD.) SRD rules underpin the 2003 Game-of-the-Year Knights of the Old Republic, Bethesda’s Fall Out to name a few games outside the Table Top banner that many picture when talking about D&D. Notably, the OGL as it has stood for two decades or so is actually more restrictive in some ways than Fair Usage doctrine might be. Notably, if you publish using their intellectual and creative rights as many authors have done, not only does you forfeit your story IP, but Wizards could take half of your publishing profits. Third party stories set in Faerun or Eberron, naming cities like Waterdeep or Greyhawk, published under the OGL are ultimately Wizards property, at least as I understand the original document. Publishers could use and adapt the rules for D&D, create their own classes or monsters, and write their own stories and settings referencing other OGL works without fear. The license stipulated that it would last in perpetuity, and that you could publish under any OGL document.

The legal loopholes that Wizards is trying to exploit now, are that perpetuity =/= irrevocable and that you can publish under any ‘authorized’ OGL, meaning that they can simply remove the authorization they granted the original OGL. Or, at the very least, that’s what Wizards has claimed.

For those curious, D&D Fourth Edition was not published under the OGL. Wizards of the Coast has been hard at work building their own Virtual Table Top or VTT to host their games online, which likely spun into D&D Beyond and later One D&D.

The concern is that not only will Wizards begin locking content behind paywalls in their app, but also that they can have complete control over what content appears in their VTT for players, cutting Third Party Publishers out entirely from the Wizards endorsed D&D experience.

I might make a post about this later, but fans of Critical Roll and Darrington Press may be surprised to find how much of Matt Mercer’s world was built on Pathfinder and not D&D IP. I don’t have an exhaustive list, but from the names of the gods to the continents and nations their are very thinly veiled pieces of Paizo IP in the Darrington Press printings of Critical Roll lore. The point being that the OGL had grown well beyond Wizards of the Coast, and largely protected smaller publishers as they helped grow the reach and player base for Wizards of the Coast. No one could deny - at least not in good faith - the importance of streams and online personalities in growing the D&D brand and the importance of table top games.

Understand while Paizo may be the second largest publisher of OGL tabletop content, this is still a David versus Goliath story. Wizards of the Coast is the most profitable arm of Hasbro, and Paizo pales in terms of sales numbers. That being said, I made the switch back in 2017 to first edition Pathfinder and haven’t looked back since.

Full disclosure, I have a friend who works in the accounting department at Paizo, so while I don’t directly have a monetary stake in this race I am biased. This wasn’t true when we made the leap to the new system in 2017 as a playgroup, but Will moved out to Seattle about a year later. I believe @theplaneswalk actual had made the switch before me, but a number of my old school friends and I are playing in a modified Pathfinder 1e campaign this Sunday.

[liskantope]

I finally got to the end of Better Call Saul a couple of weeks ago, dragging it out so that I only watched one episode a day and inserted a one-episode-a-day rewatching the entirety of Breaking Bad in-between the 9th and 10th episodes of the last season of BCS. So I've arrived a little late to this party, but here are a few scattered thoughts.

[Major spoilers for the ending of the series under the cut.]

For the most part, people around me were pretty good about not spoiling much about the ending even though I didn't announce to anyone that I was drawing out my watching until months after the final episode actually came out (it helps that, while a very popular show, BCS isn't quite at the level of Game of Thrones about which everyone had to post some kind of vague reaction on Facebook after each episode.) I did see someone on Tumblr write "poor Jimmy" and saw a few YouTube videos pop up which were discussions of the BCS ending and which showed the main character standing behind bars, so I had an idea that things weren't going to go well for Jimmy/Saul/Gene, that he was about to get his comeuppance and almost certainly wind up in prison. This hadn't fully occurred to me as an ending for Jimmy but at the same time somehow didn't actually feel like a major spoiler or a huge shock. The Breaking Bad finale was widely praised (and occasionally criticized) for leaving each character exactly in the place it felt like they were meant to be, and I knew that if BCS reprised this trend, well, prison (as opposed to death, or further sunk into a life of crime) is pretty obviously exactly where Jimmy/Saul belongs.

There's something that felt a little underwhelming for me about the last four episodes of BCS, taking place in the post- Breaking Bad black-and-white timeline, a sort of new simplicity to the story and a restriction in the creative possibilities for how everything would be wrapped up. This is understandable given that Howard is now gone, and between S6E9 and S6E10 of BCS, most of the interesting characters (including Mike, Gus, and the remaining Salamancas) meet their fates, and we're left really with only Kim as a character in Gene's life (or actually, no longer in it until he eventually manages to draw her back). I'm not sure what more the writers could have done; I certainly don't have any better idea. But something about the final part of the story pales in comparison to the intricate and meticulously-crafted ending for Walter White and the complex array of characters around him.

The ending of Jimmy's character arc can be summarized as follows: anti-hero gets in major trouble one final time; anti-hero displays the amazing powers that made him so enjoyable to watch, enabling him to come out victorious (i.e. Saul uses his arguing power to get his sentence down to 7.5 years); anti-hero redeems himself by surrendering anyway. This is satisfying in terms of watching Jimmy wind up where we want him to end up, but less so in terms of keeping us at the edge of our seats watching a less trodden-on path unfold for our anti-hero. I'll just say that it feels like this type of path has been done quite a bit before, although the only example that comes to mind right now is Luke Skywalker, hardly even an anti-hero, showing us that he's attained enough skill with the Force to defeat Darth Vader in battle but then giving himself up to the mercy of Vader and the Emperor -- we get to have our cake and eat it too, by seeing Luke demonstrate being a total badass but then morally rising above it so that the good in him ultimately triumphs.

In the case of Jimmy, I found it slightly predictable (I knew something was up as soon as he declared that he had something much juicier to testify to about Howard Hamlin's death, and I guessed that maybe somehow he was setting things up to flip things around by redeeming himself), and I wish there had been some kind of bigger, cleverer, more elaborate set-up where we might have a concrete idea of Jimmy being up to something even more evil to get himself out of even the reduced sentence, only to find that we the audience were tricked. It also came across, in some aspects of the dialog, that Jimmy was confessing mainly just to impress Kim, or to get her back in his life and on his side, which doesn't feel quite like true redemption (although shouldn't having good people in our life and on our side be something each of us value highly as part of a virtuous life? One can still argue that).

My biggest criticism of the last season has to do with Jimmy's final transformation into Saul just before the old timeline breaks and the Breaking Bad timeline begins: in Episode 9, I just really didn't like how abruptly we switched from Jimmy/Saul pleading with Kim not to break up with him to full-on-Saul in full Saul mode. It felt like one moment he's protesting that Kim shouldn't break up with him and then next moment he's paying a hooker. I wanted to watch that final stage of the transformation happen -- Kim was the main thing tying Jimmy to humanity, the face of the best side of Jimmy's character, and it was more or less literally stated (in the Season 5 desert sequence) that she was the only thing he lived for. So we should have gotten to see how utterly broken Jimmy must have been with her gone and exactly how this led him slipping down a path to becoming completely heartless and soulless later on. Instead we cut straight from very-corrupted-but-still-basically-human-and-a-protagonist Jimmy to completely-empty-and-unlikable Saul with literally nothing given to us in between, leaving me to have to speculate on what Jimmy went through in the wake of the break-up and to infer what made him go from man to zombie.

This bothered me a lot after watching Episode 9 and, months later when I went back and watched the final four episodes, I was glad to see that this was very briefly addressed by Jimmy's confession in the final episode: "I'm the one who ran away", although I needed to see that scene a second time to understand in this line he was referring to his choice to sink blindly into his Saul persona at the end of Episode 9. Vince Gilligan also explained it very well at this point in this linked interview. But I think we should have gotten to see it for ourselves, to acutely feel his pain and emptiness. It's arguably the single most important, pivotal point in his transformation, even more significant than losing his brother, and I still hate that it was completely skipped over.

Another minor point: when a fictional character has a change of heart, I'm used to being able to directly see the moment when this change occurs; maybe I missed something and just need to re-watch, but in the finale of BCS I'm just not clear on when this happens (is it when Jimmy/Saul is on the plane, between the two conversations with his lawyer about Kim and Howard?).

But, while I can criticize as much as I like, it was still a great ending to a great show. I don't think I'll ever quite fall into the "Breaking Bad was the best TV show ever made, but Better Call Saul turned out to be even better!" camp, but BCS sure did manage to hold its own.

[lillartztranslations]

Chou no Duko Translation-Shiba: Ghost Stories

I’m transtating all the sexy scence that are not in the Switch version of the game. Enjoy~!

-

-

Shiba:

"...I'm going to stop."

Yuriko:

"What...?"

Shiba:

"I'm going to stop waiting."

Yuriko:

"Mmph...!"

He suddenly pulls her in, stealing a kiss.

His lips feel hot on hers, burning even. The kiss is a passionate one, a manifestation of Shiba's intense feelings.

Shiba:

"Mmn..."

Yuriko:

"uhn... Hff! Ah..."

After kissing her hungrily, Shiba pulls back a little to stare at Yuriko, and he gives her a placid smile.

Shiba:

"You're right. I'm just as cowardly and disgusting as you said.."

"I'll show you that money can buy everything. As long as you have money, there isn't a thing in this world that you can't get. And I'll prove it to you."

"Then again... I think these arms are enough to hold your noble body down. I may not have to rely on money."

Yuriko:

"W-What are you trying to do...!?"

His words are alarming, and Yuriko trembles in Shiba's arms.

Shiba:

"What? ...Do you even need to ask? Don't pretend you have no idea what I'm about to do to you."

Shiba's voice raises, cracking at the end.

Shiba:

"You can act as high and mighty as you want, but underneath it all, you're just like the rest."

"At the end of the day, you're just a woman. Haha... Ahaha!"

Shiba laughs as if something has just snapped inside him.

He's clearly trying to hurt Yuriko by deliberately choosing crude and absent words to say.

But those words are more than enough to make her panic, since she absolutely has no experience in love and sensual affairs.

Yuriko:

"No... Noooo! Don't, please! Stop!”

Abandoning all sorts of manners, she starts thrashing wildly in his arms. But Shiba keeps his grip around her, limiting her movements as easy as twisting a baby's hand.

The difference in their strength is unsettling, and Yuriko pales. She thinks she's going to puke from the fear and mental strain.

Shiba:

"It'll be alright... I'm going to be gentle. Because you're my beloved princess..."

He murmurs, his voice the only sweet thing about him now, while catching Yuriko's trembling lips between his own to suck them strongly.

Shiba holds both of her wrists with one hand and pushes her down into the bed.

She musters all of her strength to resist, but his heavy body on top of her prevents her from doing much. It's hard to breathe, and her head is starting to grow numb.

Shiba:

"...Hm... Hm"

Yuriko:

"Nhg... fu"

Shiba:

"Hmm...Haa...My lady..."

The collar is violently cracked and the heavily grown breasts are grabbed.

Yuriko gasped and stiffened in pain.

It was the first time a man had touched that place, and her whole body was throbbing.

Yuriko:

"N-No... stop..."

Shiba:

“A classy person is classy to such an extent… it’s a beautiful shape… it’s just right with plenty of mass…”

"However, it's still very green... It's stubbornly hard. This one looks delicious, but... it's a fresh young fruit that hasn't been heated enough..."

Shiba's selfish criticism made Yuriko's skin hot.

His palms rubbed her breasts in a circular motion, his fingertips stroking the still soft nipples.

For the first time, a man groped her breasts as they liked, and Yuriko gasped with a sensation she had never experienced before.

Yuriko:

"D-Don't touch them... Don't mess with them in a weird way..."

Shiba:

"Why? They seem to react properly to it. So it's fine, right?"

Yuriko:

"Hm... W-Well, that’s not... ah..."

Shiba:

"Don't lie to me... you've got such an erection... you can smell the sweet smell of estrus, my lady..."

Yuriko:

"No...I-It hurts..."

Shiba strongly picked up Yuriko's stiff tip.

Yuriko is bewildered by the numbness that remains in the pain.

Yuriko:

(What's... happening to my body...)

Because they were relentlessly teased, the tips of the white bulge that spilled out from Shiba's large palm were already ripe and sharp.

When her plump breasts were rubbed violently and her red nipples were rolled with his fingertips, an electric current ran through her lower abdomen and she felt something leaking out.

Shiba madly repeats the blows and strokes Yuriko's body with his big palm over her kimono.

His hand gradually moved to the white calf where the hem was disheveled and dewy.

A hot palm grabbed her knee. She desperately tried to close it, but her body was interrupted and she couldn't move.

Before long, her legs were severely split, and her white thighs rolled out.

Yuriko felt a stream of air in her nakedness and trembled violently.

Yuriko:

"No...no...please, Shiba, please...!"

Shiba:

"I can't do it anymore, my lady… you drove me crazy… your beauty...this sweet scent..."

Before she knew it, Shiba's hand had cracked the hem of her kimono and was using Yuriko's inner thighs, which no one had ever touched.

The skin all over her body was dripping with sticky sweat.

Fear, astonishment, anger, all sorts of emotions raged through Yuriko like a storm, and she was about to faint.

She felt the man's rough breathing on her cheek.

He was a beast. Yuriko was confused. Now she's being attacked by a terrifying and despicable carnivore.

The beast speaks with Shiba's voice, but it's definitely not Shiba.

She felt like she would go crazy if she didn't try to persuade him. Her head desperately wanted escapism.

Shiba:

"Yuriko... Ah..."

Yuriko:

"Nhg...!!"

The pad of the man's finger stroked her naked private part.

A vivid sense.

Then there was a moist, slippery sound.

Yuriko opened her eyes. Confused. She didn't understand why the place was damp at a time like this.

Thoughts were disturbed by the man's deep love.

The man was engrossed in caressing her sweaty skin and slimy wet secrets.

The part that she has only touched when she washes her body is fingered by a man's fingers, and the blood of the whole body boils with shame and pleasure.

Yuriko:

"Ah... ah,... hmm, fu..."

Shiba:

"Hmm... ha... What a smooth skin... What a sweet scent... ah... I'm going crazy..."

"Why are you so cute... ah... I thought I could go on just by touching you... ah, it's unbearable..."

Shiba's finger, which was buried between her legs, relentlessly rubbed the wet and congested flower petals, making a wet sound.

The thick fingers rubbed the surroundings without being buried in it, and when the overflowing honey was entwined with the fingertips, they slowly rubbed the swollen flower core.

Immediately, Yuriko's hips jumped.

Yuriko:

"Oh! No, no, no, stop, ah, stop!"

Shiba:

"Do you feel it, my lady...? Your place is a little bigger than usual and easy to roll..."

Yuriko:

"Ah..!"

When Shiba's finger peels off the foreskin, a coral-colored bump reveals itself.

Yuriko jumped up like a fish due to too intense stimulation when she was stroked and rolled around with slimy love juice entwined.

Shiba:

"Haha... that's amazing... you're already dirty... you get wet easily... you've melted here too..."

Yuriko:

"A-Ah, please forgive me... ah, ah, ha..."

Shiba:

"Haa, haa... You smell so good... Ah, you're beautiful... show me more different expressions..."

The movement of Shiba's fingers became persistent and violent.

While licking Yuriko's face with hot breath, he kneads the petals that have become simmering.

Her back unconsciously wriggles. She intends to escape, but wants more tangible pleasure and moves.

Shiba's hot fingers began to rub the swollen clitoris little by little.

A hot wave surges from the back of the waist. Yuriko widened her eyes and twitched her thigh muscles.

Yuriko:

"Ahhhh!! N-No, no... ah, ah!!"

Shiba:

"Nhg...!"

Her jerky and thin body convulses.

For Yuriko, who had no experience of masturbation, the stimulation there for the first time caused a sharp pleasure close to pain, reaching the extreme in an instant.

Her head is completely blank.

It was sensual, penetrating from the toes to the top of the head.

Yuriko:

(W-What the hell... was that just now...?)

Shiba pressed his lips to Yuriko, who was panting heavily, while stroking her frayed hair at the nape of his neck with her fingers.

Shiba:

"Haa...aa... you...really are...amazing..."

"A lot... of nectar leaked out... Look... my fingers are soaked..."

While receiving a rough kiss, her breasts were rubbed and her crotch was rubbed, and Yuriko was swept away by her first pleasure.

It was so shocking that she couldn't understand what Shiba was saying for a while.

Shiba:

"It smells so good... I wonder how it tastes..."

In front of Yuriko, whose eyes were out of focus, Shiba fascinatedly sucked his fingers wet with love juice.

Yuriko, who was exhausted and dumbfounded, was unable to react to that unusual sight.

The man swallowed saliva many times at the sight of Yuriko, who spilled her abundant round breasts and breathed weakly while exposing her wet crotch.

Suddenly, tears spilled out from the corners of Yuriko's eyes.

It wasn't intended. They just naturally overflowed.

Shiba stiffened with a startled expression and he drew a long sigh.

Shiba:

"...My lady..."

Shiba hugged Yuriko with all his might, as if to suppress his impulses.

Shiba:

"Ugh...What have I done..."

He stutters softly in a low voice, and suddenly sucks Yuriko's mouth with a hot action that makes him breathe fire.

The tongues were entwined with sticky and rich movements, and transparent threads dripped when separated.

Shiba looked sadly at Yuriko, who had a hollow face, with passionate eyes.

Yuriko gradually regained consciousness, but Shiba's gaze made her heart pound.

Yuriko:

(Again... this man...)

A face that looks as if he was hurt while doing something terrible to her.

What should she do? Even though she had been treated to such an inhumane thing, she can't bring herself to truly hate him.

What should she do...

Someone knocks on the door then, the sound drains them back to reality from the floaty and phantasmal atmosphere.

Yamazaki:

"President, do you have a moment?"

Shiba:

"...Stay there and tell me what you want."

Shiba sounds like a different person. His voice is now commanding, lacking the heat from moments earlier.

Yamazaki:

"Someone from the lady's household is coming to pick her up. They gave us a call just now."

Shiba:

"...Are they now. Got it. Thank you."

Yamazaki:

"I will notify you again once they arrive. Please excuse me."

She can hear retreating footsteps from beyond the door after the businesslike announcement.

Shiba sighs and pushes up his disheveled hair.

And then he looms over Yuriko again and kisses her. She no longer has the energy to fight him.

Shiba:

"Sadly, someone from your household is coming to pick you up..."

Yuriko:

"..."

Shiba:

"...I actually don't want to part with you for the entire night, but... I  guess not tonight..."

He murmurs, nearly groaning, and kisses Yuriko on the lips again.

Shiba then wiped the sweat from Yuriko, who was still in a dazed state, wiped her wet crotch, and fixed her hem and collar in a mess.

Yuriko was left stunned.

Yuriko:

(...Has he made me into... his possession...?"

She doesn't have an answer to that.

All she knows is that the vivid sensation and Shiba's zeal are still wrapped around her tightly.

Shiba doesn't release Yuriko until someone comes knocking at the door again.

He never apologizes or asks her to forgive him. He just keeps kissing her, playing with her hair, and gazing into her eyes.

The night ends like a fever dream. It ends like the madness of sleepwalking.

And a thought suddenly occurs to Yuriko.

That perhaps, she has just experienced the night's final ghost story.

END

[otherpeoplescreativity]

Using a game to make character portraits

I think I'm fixin' to start a side issue fight.

Sorry?

Anyway, below the ReadMore is going to be some carefully chosen screencaps of supersuit-type characters from City of Heroes: Homecoming. I'm establishing a Theme and then starting a constructive criticism of my own designs within that Theme.

If you want to instead decry my lack of artistry in using a video game's character designer, and perhaps compare to using Artbreeder, you are valid! and I probably won't change my ways no matter how impassioned your point.

In our ttrpg, Our Heroes have moved up very close to the point of the story where they are likely to face a mid-level Combat Challenge.

The "Theme" of the Supergroup is the kind of investigative superhero who may wear a trenchcoat. Their powers and approach tend toward the sneaky, the indirect, the contemplative. These are definitely not "FREEEEEM first and ask questions later" types.

They have spent six sessions facing People vs Puzzle challenges, either by having noncombat encounters with witnesses (and each other!) or by using their current knowledge to track down another Strange Device Probably Left Here By Unknown Supervillain. They have only just now gotten involved enough that Supervillain might notice something's up, and detail a few lower-level Minions to go tidy the edges.

The "Theme" of the coming mid-level Villain Minion Squad therefore cannot be combat heavies! The Minions should be dangerous, but solvable by the same indirect and sneaky and trenchcoat-wearing tactics.

All of the Minions for this group are expected to wear "crimson jumpsuits". Some have more pockets. Some have modified the sleeves. Some have underlayers.

All have superpowers.

I took some "crowd control" characters that I used to play in City of Villains, whose costumes I had saved before shutdown in 2012, and used them in Homecoming to pose for some character portraits. Here's what I have so far:

I don't know why Pichana's picture is uploading like this, all the way over to the left. Anyway this guy has already been captured by the Heroes. Part of what the rest of the Villain Minion Squad should do is to try to find out what happened to him. Not that they necessarily want him back!

I do not like the shiny red boots, they don't match the description I wrote out for the character. But nothing in the game DOES match. And I have absolutely no graphic arts skills to modify.

Anyway, I have established the basics of the Theme: no obvious electronics. Personal styling mostly happens in the accessories. The available resources for these "work uniforms" include decent quality fits, because this tall thin man does not have his pants riding up his calves or his sleeves "pushed up" to suggest the off-the-rack feel of something too short for his dimensions.

Not a lot of armor. For only the one guy, that might be happenstance. Maybe he was not expected to encounter heroes. Maybe his own team would rather he succumb if they have to practice aggressive attitude adjustment.

Here is one of the crowd control specialists. I have not settled on a name for her yet; let's call her "Verse" for the moment.

Verse is obviously going to have fire-related abilities. (That is what she WANTS you to think!)

She does not have much in the way of pockets or belt pouches on this crimson jumpsuit. I want to give careful thinkers the idea that maybe her manager does not trust her with gear.

Verse also has deep red scars that show up splendidly on her pale peach skin. If her power were not actively building up in preparation for use, one might also note that her eyes are white all over -- no visible iris coloration.

Again this person's clothing is not baggy or super snug. A clothing connoisseur will have a chance of noticing that every one of these Minions has their clothing tailored to suit their bodies, if not their preferences.

Verse does not have upper body protection at all. She does have those fingerless gloves to improve her grip or to protect her palms. She has some kind of shinguard in place on both legs, mostly protecting the upper two thirds of the shin, but her boots are flat-soled ankle boots.

Verse also has black leather straps wrapped around her upper thighs, attaching to the red leather waist belt at about the points of her pelvic bones. Does Verse sometimes go parachuting? Is she partway geared up to wear a rocketpack? That is a deliberate style choice that will hopefully get the Trenchcoat Brigade speculating.

This last fellow is going to need two images to show what I was doing with his design:

This one also needs a better name. Back in the Rogue Isles, the original Corrupter character was named "Grigaere". I do not think this version is going to suit the original gregarious Black Forest of Germany story, but I will refer to him as "Grigaere" for now anyway.

Grigaere has energy blast powers, but they look like beams of darkness. (Grigaere was a Dark Blast/Pain Dominator Corruptor, for those familiar with the City of Villains stuff.)

I am not delighted with how his full-length portrait turned out, because I could not get the camera close enough without cutting off part of him:

There is a lot about this costume that I think I could have done better, to the point that I am not sure which bit to tackle first. I picked the slightly looser fit of trousers and jacket sleeves because I do not want most of the characters to look like they have to be peeled out of their supersuits. I picked the motorcycle boots to give the character an impression of stolidity in combat: once Grigaere chooses his location, he anchors himself in place and starts doing ranged attacks.

His belt has several small pouches attacked all around it. He has something-or-other along as equipment, but it is exclusively items of palm size or smaller; there is no pocket where he could store a cellphone, for example, or a wrench and screwdriver. This may be a specialist but this is not a mechanic. He is not expected to do any manual tasks that could get messy, those sleeves would get stained and damaged, and maybe put his safety at risk.

Right now I have one "crowd control" type, and one "ranged attack" type. The entire Villain Minion Squad would be expected to notice enemies at a range of more than half a room away. They would be expected to hem those enemies into place, then do ranged damage to quickly knock all resistance into unconsciousness or compliance.

I really do need to convert three more members of the team, at least one of whom will be mostly team defense. But if I can't figure out what is wrong with Grigaere's outfit, how to make it look more aesthetically suitable to the Theme and also more believable as Minion What Does Sometimes Fight For Evil, I am stumped on how to move forward at all.

Can I keep the loose fit on Grigaere? Or does that need to go?